Thursday, August 22, 2013

If You Want To Safely Support The Muslim Brotherhood, Your Best Bet Is Israel

Today it has become evident that leaders and members of the Islamic Movement in Israel enjoy more freedom and rights than the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, Jordan and even -- under the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank -- Hamas.Khaled Abu Toameh

Arab journalists and columnists in Israel have been expressing their views about the Egyptian crisis without fear, while their colleagues in Egypt, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority are afraid to speak their mind.

Israel, for example, is one of the few countries in the Middle East where Muslims are permitted to demonstrate in favor of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood organization.
This is not because Israel supports Morsi or the Muslim Brotherhood; it is because the Muslim protesters know that in a democratic country like Israel they can hold peaceful demonstrations and express their views without having to worry about being targeted by the authorities.

Israel has become a safe place not only for Arab Christians, but also for Muslims who wish to express their opinion away from intimidation and violence.

For example, here is a video of Israeli Arabs marching to support Egypt's ousted Islamist President Mohammed Morsi in Nazareth:

Here is another protest, this time outside the Egyptian embassy in Tel Aviv

This contrasts with other Muslim countries in the Middle East where protesters are harassed, arrested, shot and wounded. Closer to home -- while the leaders of the Islamic Movement in Israel, Raed Salah and Kamal al-Khatib, have been able to organize protests without opposition, the PA has warned mosque preachers against supporting Morsi and earlier this week arrested 2 Palestinian Arabs for publicly speaking out in favor of him and broke up a pro-Morsi rally in Hebron.

Pro-Morsi protest in Tel Aviv. There may be Middle East countries cracking
down on support for the Muslim Brotherhood -- but Israel is not one of them.
Photo: Orna Cohen/YnetNews

You end up with the odd situation where Israel is not only the only place in the Middle East where Christians can practice their religion unmolested -- it is also where Muslims can freely support the same Muslim Brotherhood that opposes the existence of Israel.

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